Syracuse University football preseason camp: impressions from day 1 center on size

Doug Marrone Post Practice Interview : Day 1Syracuse University Football Head Coach Doug Marrone talks about how long it took the team to practice on the first day preseason practice, the conditioning of the players and wide receiver Marcus Sales. Video and photographs by Frank Ordonez

Syracuse, NY -- The Syracuse University football team held its first practice of preseason camp Monday and, as expected, there was little to see, an observation made obvious in coach Doug Marrone’s brief news conference afterward. There is little insight to be gained from watching players run around in shorts and helmets. Here is what I saw:

By sheer numbers this is the largest team Marrone has opened practice with in his four preseason camps. He had said Saturday that he expected to have 90-plus players on the field excluding specialists, and that was an accurate statement. Every segment of an Orange practice is clearly announced by the blaring sound of an air horn, and precision is key, but the sheer numbers messed a little with the timing something Marrone said needed to be corrected. It is a good challenge to have for a team that lacked numbers over the past several years.

By sheer size this is also the largest team Marrone has opened practice with. Folks who attend Friday’s Fanfest will see what I mean. The 2012 Orange, with a few notable exceptions, is big. The heights and weights listed on the preseason roster will surely be updated, with some of the largest players on that list coming in significantly lighter – sophomore nose tackle Eric Crume is listed at 332 but has shed the spare tire and is down to 300 and sophomore tailback Adonis Ameen-Moore is listed at 244 and is down to 225.

Even so, the team is large. Even with junior-college transfer Davon Walls (6-5, 315) absent taking a test (Marrone was hopeful the player will be in camp today pending the outcome of the exam) the defensive front is huge. Crume (300) and junior Jay Bromley (6-3, 291) flanked by speed rushers Donnie Simmons – who is listed on the roster at 6-2, 226 but has grown into the 243 range – and Brandon Sharpe (6-2, 245) is finally a D-I type front four. Put senior Deon Goggins (6-1, 275) and sophomore Micah Robinson – who is listed at 6-4, 252 but is now a solid 265 or so – into the rotation at end and you have a unit that would look at home – size-wise, mind you – on an NFL field.

Another position – one of concern to me personally – that looks bigger is linebacker. Sophomore OLB Dyshawn Davis is listed at 6-3, 213, for instance, and appears to be closer to 220. Junior OLB Marquis Spruill is listed at 6-1 216 but I bet is in the 225 range. Even senior MLB Siriki Diabate, listed at 5-10, 210, appears to be 10 pounds heavier.

With the added size has come increased strength, according to one insider I spoke with at practice. He said the team had an outstanding off-season in terms of strength and conditioning, another fact hinted at by Marrone in his post-practice news conference. I’ll know more when the pads go on and the roster is updated, but the numbers, the size and the enthusiasm Monday were signs of encouragement for a team that has been picked to finish seventh in the eight-team Big East.